Sunshine
by evieeden
Summary: Waking up with a hangover can be a sobering experience. Continuation of Moonshine. Advent story written for 1st December.


**So here is the first of this year's advent stories – 25 oneshots leading from the 1****st**** of December up until Christmas. I've been a bit more organised this year which means the chances of you all actually getting all 25 is pretty good at the moment.**

**This oneshot is a continuation piece to another oneshot I wrote called Moonshine. You can read this without reading the other story, but some references might be a bit confusing if you're coming to this straight.**

**So Happy 1****st**** December and a big thank you to you all for reading, and especially to my obliging beta for this oneshot, idealskeptic, who is utterly fabulous.**

**As always, to my eternal regret, I do not own Twilight.**

**Sunshine**

It was the blinding light that woke Bella up, piercing through her eyelids and starting up a thumping in the side of her head. She scrunched her face up, trying to cling to the last remnants of sleep, but the pain in her head wouldn't let her drift back into oblivion like she wanted.

The smallest of shifts in the mattress behind her immediately set her stomach rolling and then she had no choice but to open her eyes and sprint as fast as she could to the bathroom where she dry-heaved into the toilet bowl.

Thankfully, the bathroom was a lot darker than the bedroom had been and she was finally able to open her eyes a fraction at a time without setting off her pounding head too badly.

It was then that she noticed that she wasn't where she expected to be.

This wasn't the bathroom that she shared with Charlie in their little two-bedroom house. Instead it looked suspiciously like one of the bathrooms in Sam's place; she recognised the tiling that was repeated from downstairs.

Which meant...

Stumbling towards the door, Bella tentatively opened it and peered through the gap she had made, only to squeak and slam it shut again when she caught sight of what was in the next room, the one where she had woken up.

Sam. Asleep. Naked.

It hadn't occurred to her until then to look at her body, but as she did her own nudity became apparent.

What had she done last night?!

She leaned back against the wood as she tried to dredge up memories of what had occurred from the haze of her pain-filled mind.

She remembered receiving a call from Jake inviting her to come to one of the pack gatherings and she had accepted. Given where she was right now, she knew that she must have accepted. She remembered the rest of the pack gathering at Sam's as well, only Seth and the young wolves missing. They had been joking around, stuffing their faces with pizza when Jake had announced that he had a surprise for them all and produced...

The moonshine.

Everything that had happened last night – the drinking, the dancing, watching the other wolves begin to caress each other, feeling turned on by the sight, and then Sam, oh God, Sam! – all came flooding back to her.

She slid down the door heavily as her knees gave way beneath her.

She had sat on his lap and writhed against him like a bitch on heat or something, she had let him get her off and then sucked his cock. She had fucked him while everyone else watched!

Bella buried her face in her hands as shame over her actions stole through her, making her hangover seem positively innocent by comparison.

She needed to get out of there now, before anyone else woke up and she was forced to face what she had done the night before under the influence of the alcohol.

Getting out of the bathroom was easy enough. Sam was still asleep when she peeked out of the bathroom again and although he rolled over and muttered her name, he didn't wake up at all.

It was once she had gotten safely across the bedroom when Bella realised her problem. She had no clothes. She vaguely remembered them being stripped off of her when she was sat on the sofa, but her nerves were already shot to pieces in a way that streaking through the house naked to get to them would be counter-productive. Luckily, a convenient pile of laundry sitting on top of the dresser provided her with a shirt to cover herself. There weren't any pants there that would stay up if she tried to swipe those too, but Sam being so much bigger than her meant that his shirt came down to her knees so that would do until she could reach her own clothes and underwear.

The rest of the pack were still there when she crept downstairs, but again her luck seemed to hold and they all stayed asleep. She couldn't help but blush when she noticed the various positions and states of undress that they were in though.

Although her memory had provided recollections of exactly what had happened the night before, there was something about seeing it right in front of her that made her squirm.

Quickly locating her clothes, and thanking a higher power that they all remained intact, she pulled her underwear and shoes on before making a run for her truck.

She was just congratulating herself on her lucky escape, when the passenger door was suddenly yanked open and Paul swung himself into the seat next to her.

He looked over to where she had frozen in her seat and then rolled his eyes.

"Well, are we going or not?"

Bella tried to work out why he was accompanying her, but then decided that she didn't want to hear it. She pulled away from the small house and reversed back onto the main road.

"Where am I taking you?"

Paul leaned back and stuck his feet on top of the dashboard.

"Just as far as the border. I need to take over from the mini wolves and I might as well save myself a run to the treaty line."

She nodded and then concentrated on the road, ignoring the eyes that were boring into her from the other side of the cab.

"So," Paul drawled out, making her jump, "you and Sam, huh?"

Bella blushed.

"I have to say, chickee, I never knew you had it in you. That shit last night was hot. Whoever thought that little Bella Swan had a kinky side?"

Bella flapped her hand at her overheated face, trying to cool down. In the end she ignored Paul's barely-concealed sniggers and just wound down the window.

Wanting to get back at him, she asked her own leading question. "So, you and Jake and Leah, huh?"

Paul's laughter immediately cut off and he scowled.

"You just had to say Jake's name first in that, didn't you?"

She shrugged.

"Fuck if I know what that was," he finally answered. "Leah's never shown any interest in either of us before. Guess what they say about drink making you do stuff you wouldn't normally is true after all."

"Maybe she likes you?" Bella suggested.

"Maybe she was just horny and Jake and I were convenient," he shot back.

"So you care?" She was trying to wrap her head around what he was implying.

Paul wasn't having any of it though and turned the tables back on her.

"What about you? Do you care about Sam?

"I..." She flushed again and struggled with what to say. She still wasn't entirely sure about how last night came to pass or what she felt towards the Alpha.

"'Cos he cares about you," Paul finished.

That shut Bella's mouth quickly and she stared wide-eyed at Paul until he swore and grabbed the wheel, shifting the truck away from the centre of road where it had drifted.

"Christ Woman! Pay attention! Jesus!"

Bella was too strung out to carry on like normal after what he had said. She pulled over, ignoring Paul's huff of annoyance.

"What do you mean he cares about me?"

The wolf glared at her. "Don't play like that with me!" When he witnessed her confused expression and racing heartbeat, his voice softened a little. "You're telling me that you didn't know?"

Bella shook her head wordlessly and Paul sighed heavily, running his hand over his face.

"Sam likes you. He has since he picked your depressed ass up out of that puddle in the forest when the leech left you. Why else do you think he kept you to himself last night? If you were just some girl then he wouldn't have cared either way that Embry looked all too willing to join in. Make no mistake, Swan, Sam wants you and he doesn't want anyone but him to have you."

Bella was mystified. "But... why? I mean, I don't understand."

Paul rolled his eyes at her again and leaning forward, pressed his fingers against the bite mark she had forgotten about on her neck. The second he sat back again, her own hand crept up to cover the mark.

"That's halfway towards a mating mark you know. You already smell a little like him already."

"Huh?"

"Wolves mate for life, Swan," Paul explained impatiently. "And he hasn't pushed you yet or claimed you fully, but that-," he gestured towards her neck, "- is a warning to all other males to leave you alone."

"Oh." Bella thought about it, but the anger she should have felt at the presumptuous bite was swept away by the warmth that spread through her.

Sam liked her, or at least, he liked her enough to bite her and want her all to himself. He hadn't had sex with her last night just because he was drunk and she was there. According to Paul he actually liked her.

"Did you bite Leah?" She didn't know where that question came from.

Paul scowled at her. "Are you going to drive me to the border or what?"

Flushing at his angry tone, Bella immediately moved to comply and they were quickly heading back towards Forks. The man in the cab fumed silently next to her.

"Yes," he finally answered. "But so did Jake so who knows what's going to happen there."

"I'm sorry." Bella winced at the misery in his voice.

"It's not your fault," he conceded. "I should've known better, but moonshine messes with your head and I never was a sensible drunk."

Bella reached out to squeeze his hand reassuringly, but when she went to draw back he grabbed her. Bella looked at him pointedly and then at their hands, but he didn't let go. Instead, he gripped her fingers tightly almost to the brink of pain.

"I'm going to give you some advice. Don't break his heart. Sam's done a lot for all of us; he's a good guy. He doesn't deserve to be yanked back and forth by some little girl who doesn't know what she wants."

"I don't..."

"You don't what?"

Bella swallowed. "I don't know what happened last night exactly, or what I was thinking, but I'm not trying to hurt him or anything."

Paul looked disbelieving. "If you're not going to hurt him then why are you running away?"

"Because..." She was getting frustrated. "Because... Oh, just because," she finished angrily. "Besides you ran away too."

There was silence for a minute, then, "Yeah, I guess I did. Seems like we're both cowards here."

That made Bella smile. "We are. Obviously the moonshine took that fear away for a while."

"That's the beauty of alcohol. It strips away all the pretences until there's nothing left but you and truth... Christ! I'm never drinking again. Stop here."

Bella pulled over for the second time and Paul jumped out of the cab.

"I don't really care what your decision is, Swan, but just remember that at some point you've got to make one." With a nod and a half-wave, he disappeared into the forest, leaving Bella alone and with a lot to think about.

Charlie wasn't in when she got home and she was glad for that, especially given the state that she was in. First things first, she took a shower and cried out softly when she shifted her legs only to find that her muscles had cramped. Stretching them out, she caught sight of herself in the mirror opposite and her reflection captured her full attention, any thoughts of aches and pains vanishing from her mind.

She looked wild and wanton in a way that she never had before.

Her hair was tangled and all over the place and her lips were swollen from Sam's rough kissing and when she had...

The memory of her mouth around his cock made her shudder in pleasure.

Her nipples were red and when she pressed the pad of a finger against them, she found that they were still sore from the attentions of Sam's mouth. There were hickeys on her neck and chest to accompany the bite mark she knew was covered by her hair.

Her eyes were wide and although she looked really stunned by her appearance, they were shining in a way that she'd never seen.

Opening her arms, Bella spun in a circle, laughing when her hand accidentally knocked the sink.

She looked good. She looked well-cared for and happy and sensual.

And she knew that it was all down to Sam.

Who knew that having sex with him in front of the rest of the pack would have this kind of effect on her?

Her jubilation lasted as long as it took her to get from the bathroom to her room where she found the Alpha waiting by the window for her, his face stern. Her confidence of the last five minutes melted away as embarrassment took over once more.

"Hi." She shuffled nervously, wishing she'd remembered to take a clean set of clothes to the bathroom with her. She felt awfully vulnerable standing before him in just a towel.

Sam stared at her, his eyes scanning over her body, not saying a word.

Deciding she'd feel better about the inevitable confrontation with some clothes on, Bella dumped her shirt and underwear from the night before in the laundry basket and then turned to her dresser to find some underwear.

She had just located some panties when she felt heat across the back of her neck as Sam swept her hair aside and looked at the bite he had left. She jumped. She hadn't heard him move across the room towards her at all.

Freezing in place like a hunted deer, Bella's knees trembled as he leaned closer, hot breath flowing over the barely healed mark. He exhaled again and her body responded to the stimulation, tingling beginning down low in the pit of her stomach.

"Why did you leave?" His voice sounded gravelly and the tone of it made her shiver involuntarily.

"I didn't know what to do." She went to turn around to face him, but his hands firmly grasping her hips stopped her. After a brief pause at his actions, she continued. "I mean, I've never done anything like that before, or drunk that much before for that matter, but when I woke up and I was naked and you were naked and then when I got downstairs so was everyone else, I just didn't know what to think."

"So you just ran," he accused.

Bella flinched. "There was no reason for me to stay."

"No...?" His words choked off abruptly and his hands tightened before Bella was abruptly spun around and her chin grasped, forcing her to look him in the eyes. "You have no idea how I feel about you, do you?"

Bella jerked back, Paul's words from earlier ringing in her ears.

"I don't..."

Sam stepped back too, running his hands through his hair in frustration.

"Jesus, Bella. I've been trying to make you see how much I like you for months and I was so happy last night because it felt like you liked me to..."

"I do," she interjected. "I like you a lot, Sam, but last night was..."

"Incredible." This time it was his turn to interrupt. "Last night was incredible. I don't care that everyone else was there too, I don't care that we were both drunk, all I care is that it was you and me and it felt like the start of something."

Bella was completely taken aback by his heartfelt words. She had known that he'd liked her – they shared a lot of the same interests and had always got on well together when the pack had gatherings like last night, but she hadn't realised just quite how much he liked her or how much she liked him in return. No matter how hard she tried to imagine it, she really couldn't see herself behaving in the same way as she had with Sam with any of the other pack members, no matter how drunk she was. She recalled a point in the evening when Embry had stepped in to help her undress and she had unconsciously moved closer to Sam, wanting the other male to leave her alone, which he had. Surely if it was just a matter of alcohol then she would've done the same with any of the pack.

"Is that why you bit me?" she finally asked. "Paul told me about it earlier. He said that it was the start of you claiming me or something."

Sam looked away and swore. "Fucking Lahote. Yes," he eventually added, "it's why I bit you. It's instinctual to bite anyway, but with it being you there..." His voice trailed off. "I'm sorry."

His apology surprised Bella.

"Why are you sorry? Do you regret it?"

"Not for one second." His answer was immediate. "Do you?"

Bella bit her lip. "I should, but I really don't."

Sam grinned at her reply. Bella suddenly understood that he had been expecting her to turn him away; it made her recall her conversation with Paul earlier.

"I was warned, you know, not to break your heart."

A small frown line appeared between Sam's brows. "And are you going to?"

Bella shook he head. "I don't think I could." She summoned her courage and blurted out what was possibly the world's most pathetic sentence. "I like you too."

Sam's smile spread across his face again, clearly he didn't think she was as pathetic as she thought she was. He leaned down so he was looming over her, his mouth millimetres from hers, and then he paused.

Bella took his invitation to take the lead, rising onto her toes to complete the contact, their lips meeting and gently brushing against each other.

At that point, Bella's natural clumsiness made an appearance and she lost her balance, pitching forward. Sam didn't let her fall though. His hands on her ass, he lifted her up, encouraging her to wrap her legs around his waist, their mouths still attached.

Their kiss turned hungry. Gone were the soft, hesitant touches of a moment ago, now they devoured each other.

Bella's towel was easily tossed aside and keeping one hand gripping her butt, Sam slid the other around between her legs, easily finding her clit and making her jolt in his arms. She squirmed against him, trying to put pressure on all the places that needed it most, but he held her too tightly in place and so she had to settle for rocking frantically against his lazy fingers, small gasps escaping her every time he brushed against a sensitive spot.

She tried to reach down to undo his cut-offs, but he was holding her too high up his body for her to reach. She had to settle for clinging to his neck, clutching at his hair as he slid those beautifully long fingers into her, curling them forward and making her moan.

"Oh God! Sam!"

His fingers curled forward to stroke against the nerves of her front wall at that same time that his thumb crept forward to rub over her clit. That stimulation was all it took to propel Bella over the edge and she screamed out her pleasure.

Sam held her close as she recovered from her orgasm, running his hand up and down her back, helping to bring her down from the stimulation. She settled against him in response, her body feeling completely boneless. Snuffling her face against his shoulder, she placed a soft kiss at the base of his neck.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

She laughed softly. "I'm wonderful, although I don't think that I'm going to be able to move for a while."

Her words were met by a soft growl. "I'm sure you could move given the right incentive."

She shivered at the promise held in his words.

"And what might that incentive be?"

She gasped as her world was suddenly tilted upside down and she found herself flat on her back on her bed, Sam looming over her.

"I'm sure I can come up with something you might like." He placed a kiss on her mouth and then moved his lips downwards, punctuating each word with a kiss down her body. When he reached her breasts, he moved slightly to one side and sucked her nipple into his mouth. Bella cried out as the suction sent tiny electrical sparks through her nerves, down her body to her centre. She squirmed at the feeling, her legs rubbing against one another, still wet from her previous orgasm.

Summoning all her willpower to make him stop the delicious movements he was making with his tongue, Bella grabbed at Sam's hair and tugged him upwards, guiding his mouth back to hers.

"No."

He froze. "No?" he queried, a frown on his face.

She shook her head. "Not like this. Inside. Now."

The worry on his face was immediately replaced by a sly smirk. "Whatever you want."

He moved off her body for a few seconds and when he returned he was naked, his erect cock already weeping pre-cum from the head.

Bella held her arms out. "Come here."

He lowered his body down so they were pressed chest to chest and then kissed her, his lips briefly darting away to caress her cheeks, her neck, her nipples, before always returning to her mouth. His erection was nestled between her legs and every time he shifted his body, it brushed against the place where she wanted him the most.

"Sam," she breathed out in between kisses. "Sam, please fuck me."

He needed no other invitation, sliding up her body, he lifted his hip and slid into her oh so slowly. Bella's nails dug into the skin of his neck as she felt herself being deliciously stretched by his cock. And then he was gone, only to push back in a second later, taking her breath away.

Bella clung to him as he continued to work their bodies together, each thrust painfully slow to the point where she was begging him to move faster, to do something, anything, to alleviate the slow build up on pressure in her belly.

Sam shook his head, but she noticed that his teeth were gritted with the effort of controlling himself. She resolved to destroy that control any way she could manage.

The next time he pulled out, Bella pushed at his shoulders and with surprising dexterity for her, managed to scramble out from underneath his body. Not having him above her didn't make the pressure go away though and her hand slipped down unbidden to press against her clit, allowing her just a fraction of the stimulation she desired.

"Bella, what...?" Sam looked utterly confused and slightly worried.

Stalling his concern, Bella immediately climbed back onto the bed and pushed at his shoulders, frowning in dissatisfaction when she couldn't make him move.

"I want you on your back... please?"

His expression cleared up as enlightenment hit and he obligingly turned over and stretched out across the mattress, his arms folded behind his head, a smug look on his face. He gestured towards the erection flat against his stomach.

"Hop on then."

Bella smiled in satisfaction and crawled on top of him, using his guiding hand to keep her balance as she swung one leg across his waist so she could straddle him. Her thighs, still sore from the night before immediately began to ache, but she ignored the slight discomfort in favour of the better things to come.

Her hands flat on Sam's stomach for balance, she shuffled backwards and he obligingly held his erection in place for her to impale herself back upon him. They both groaned in satisfaction when she finally sank down fully before rocking her hips forwards so she could do it all over again.

Bella's movements were quicker than Sam's, less controlled and she kept pausing to grind down, rubbing her tingling clit against his pubic bone.

As with the night before, her legs got tired before they were anywhere near finishing and Sam took over the rhythm, his hips thrusting up every time he pulled her back down onto his cock, his hands clenching around her waist.

Bella tossed her head back as she rode him. All of her limbs felt boneless, like she was a puppet whose strings had been cut and she was forced once again to yield control over to Sam.

"More," she sighed. "More." It was the only thing she could say at that point.

"More? Greedy girl," he commented wickedly before trailing an obliging hand down over her hips, delving through her folds to rub at the bundle of nerves.

Bella went off like a firecracker, shrieking and clawing as the pressure that had been building inside her suddenly contracted and released. She jerked backwards, but Sam's grip on her didn't let her fall when she would've.

She whimpered as he continued to manipulate her clit. After this orgasm and the one before, she was beginning to feel a little sensitive and couldn't help squirming as he continued to brush his fingers over her still-firing nerves.

"Enough... I can't..." she panted.

Sam finally relinquished his touch and Bella collapsed against his chest, unable to move, completely breathless and with her hair sticking the back of her neck. As she lay there panting, she realised that Sam had yet to get his release.

As if he heard what she was thinking, she was abruptly flipped over so she was lying face first down on her bed, Sam on top of her once more. To her surprise, he didn't life her hips like she expected, probably guessing that if she tried to rise up on all fours right now, she would most likely end up a heap on the floor. Instead, he let his weight sink down, pushing her further into the mattress and slid up her body so his cock was nestled between her ass cheeks.

Despite her tiredness, Bella shifted her legs apart a little, allowing his body to rest more comfortably against hers, his cock now pressed against her sensitive core. He made a kind of rolling move on top of her and his dick pressed inside her once more.

It was different this time.

The weight of his body pinned her down so she couldn't move away and she felt fuller as he thrust into her, his cock hitting all the nerves in the front of her walls as he moved, low grunts accompanying each drive into her body. The sensation made her cry out and she tried to move her hips backwards, to keep him inside her, to make him move faster, but their position left her unable to move, completely helpless as he covered her body, driving into her with powerful thrusts that made her shiver.

His hands clasped over her wrists, adding to his dominance over her body, and as he began to speed up his pushes into her body, his teeth came to clasp over the back of her neck. He didn't bite her like before, but the animalistic move sent Bella spiralling into her third orgasm, shrieking out his name as she came.

As if that was the signal that he had been waiting for, Sam began to move faster, his pushes becoming jerkier and more erratic as he rushed towards his own release.

With a growl, Sam's teeth finally broke skin, marking her again as he had the night before, and he reached his peak.

The moment almost seemed frozen in time for a second, before Sam tentatively relaxed his jaw, releasing Bella from his teeth's bite. She shivered as the cool air met her broken skin and whimpered as Sam then pulled out of her. Even leaving her body, her walls still fluttered around his cock with the remnants of her orgasm and she felt strangely bereft when he collapsed on the bed next to her.

His chest heaving, Sam reached over and grabbed her, pulling her over to him so she was cuddled against his side.

"That was so much better sober."

She laughed. "Speak for yourself, I've still got a hangover from yesterday."

He frowned down at her. "You don't feel well? Why didn't you say something? I wouldn't have pushed you if you weren't well."

Bella slapped his chest lightly. "I'm not ill, silly. I was just a bit headachy still."

He frowned, but his expression lightened when she pulled herself upwards to kiss him, running her fingers lightly over his cheek.

"I'm fine, really." She paused. "I'm actually really hungry now."

Sam laughed at her confused expression. "Have you never got that drunk before?" She shook her head and he placed an amused kiss against her forehead. "It's normal to be hungry afterwards. Tell you what, let's go and have a quick shower and then I'll make you something nice and greasy to eat."

In the end, he had to carry Bella out of the room and hold her up in the shower as she couldn't get her legs to stay upright. Once they were clean and safely situated downstairs, Bella on a chair and Sam cracking eggs into a pan in the kitchen, she finally raised the subject she had been thinking about.

"You bit me again."

Sam carefully avoided her gaze, staring resolutely at the food he was cooking. "Is that a problem?"

"No." She shook her head, her fingers coming up to brush against the already healed mark. "Paul told me that it's halfway towards a mating mark."

Sam finally turned around to face her. "Paul seems to have told you an awful lot."

Bella shrugged. "I think he was worried about you." She chewed on her bottom lip. "So he said that for it to be a full mating you'd have to claim me, whatever that means."

He frowned and then turned back to the food. He found it easier to explain this to her if he wasn't looking into those wide guileless eyes.

"Mating requires a ritual during sex where I would bite you and then claim you as my own. Once it's completed then that's it for us."

Bella leaned forward. "What do you mean 'it for us'?"

He quickly dished up their breakfast and set a plate in front of Bella, clearing the dirty pans into the sink before taking a seat opposite her. His plate had four times as much food on top of it as hers did.

He forked a heap of bacon into his mouth before he replied. "It means exactly what it sounds like. Wolves mate for life in the wild and the wolves inside of us demand nothing less. If I were to claim you fully as my mate then we would be tied together for the rest of our lives. I would never look at another woman and you would never be able to be with another man – I wouldn't be able to let you. And you would only ever be able to have my children."

He put his cutlery down and leaned back, meeting her eyes frankly.

"The bite that I've given you so far is just a claiming mark. It means that you're precious to me and are under my protection."

Bella swallowed heavily.

"Are you planning on going through the mating ritual with me?"

A half smile crossed Sam's place and leaning forward, he pulled Bella towards him and sat her sideways on his lap. She immediately settled against him, her body leaning into his, her arm thrown across his shoulders, her head nestled against the cradle of his neck.

One of his hands rested casually against her thigh and his thumb stroked over her leg.

"Bella, I've only just admitted how I feel about you and you've only just told me your feelings about me this morning. As much as I would love for you to be my mate in the future, for the moment, I'm just happy if you say that you want to be with me."

"Of course I want to be with you." She kissed the side of his neck. "I'm just..."

"Exactly." He ran his fingers comfortingly through her hair. "Which is why I haven't even considered mating with you just yet. All I'm asking for from you at the moment is a chance."

Bella raised her head so she could meet his eyes. "You have one."

The smile that crossed his face at her reassurance was beautiful to Bella and she couldn't help grinning back. He leaned in to capture her lips with his and then hugged her.

"Thank you for giving me a chance."

"Of course I did." She slapped him playfully. "What did you think I'd say?"

"Honestly? I thought you'd slap me for fucking you last night in front of everyone and then swear to never see me again. "

"No. I think I like you too much. I'll keep you around for a bit."

The arm around her waist squeezed her lightly.

"Glad to hear it."

"Me too. I really, really like you, Sam," she confessed shyly.

"I really, really like you too." He kissed her again and she melted against him.

They offered each other smiles before getting back to their food, Bella staying in Sam's lap this time.

When they were finished they stayed cuddled together, Bella's fingers playing with the longer hair that curled at the nape of his neck.

"I hope we're not the only ones."

He hummed. "What's that?"

"Us, giving each other a chance. I hope we're not the only ones. I hope Paul can give Leah and Jake a chance too."

She barely noticed the look of surprise on Sam's face, lost in her own thoughts about the other wolves.

Finally Sam managed to contain his shock. "I suppose they'll just have to work it all out between them."

"Yes," she agreed. "But I love happy endings. I want them to have one too."

"We've got our happy ending, huh?"

Bella mock glared at him. "Well I don't know where you were, but I got about three."

He laughed and in one smooth movement, stood up and twisted her around his body so they were chest to chest, her legs around his waist. Ignoring her scream of protest, he headed up the stairs and back towards her room.

"Well then, let's see if we can make it more than three happy endings. I'd hate for you to feel short-changed."

Bella threw back her head and laughed.

"Yep, we definitely wouldn't want that."

He tossed her onto the bed and quickly and efficiently stripped her of her clothes. As he began kissing his way over her chest, down her stomach and towards her centre, she reflected that despite their inauspicious start, she could grow to love this uninhibited side of her personality.

After all, it had brought her Sam...and his ever so talented tongue.

She really couldn't complain about that.


End file.
